Governor of Ebonyi state, David Umahi, has ordered the closure of all government offices to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the state.
Okay.ng understands that the governor gave this directive as the state on Wednesday recorded 23 confirmed cases of COVID-19.
The state commissioner for information, Uchenna Orji, conveyed the governor’s message in a statement issued on Thursday.
The governor expressed displeasure over the infection rate of the virus among state Executive Council (EXCO) members.
Umahi, however, stated that though the affected government officials were in stable condition, the closure was to ensure effective contact tracing.
He said: “All civil servants shall work from their various homes within this period but shall leave their phones open to respond to official imperatives.
“Dr Richard Nnabo and his medical team should commence comprehensive decontamination of government offices including the new and old complexes.
“All EXCO members and government officials especially those of the ministries of finance and that of budget, are advised to undergo COVID-19 tests within this seven-day period,” he said.
The governor further directed that during the period of closure, all workers especially from the two aforementioned ministries, should go into self-isolation.
“All site operations shall, however, remain open but must be in strict observance of COVID-19 protocols.
“All sons and daughters of Ebonyi living outside the state are advised to avoid the risk of returning, as records show that the positive cases hitherto recorded in the state are from people who returned from epicentre states,” he said.
He expressed dismay over the number of COVID-19 cases in the state which had ‘unfortunately’ risen to 75 out of over 3, 000 samples tested.
“I plead with our people to take the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) protocols seriously especially all precautionary measures of hand-washing, use of sanitisers and face masks, observation of social distancing, avoiding crowded places among others.
“This is important because we have entered into another phase of the COVID-19 spread called community transmission.
“We have, however, discharged a total of 26 COVID–19 patients while 49 are still receiving treatment and are in stable conditions,” he said.
